BKU calls emergency panchayat after Rakesh Tikait 'heckled' at anti-terror rally in Muzaffarnagar
Muzaffarnagar (PTI): The Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) has called for an emergency 'Kisan Panchayat' in Muzaffarnagar on Saturday after a section of people at a protest rally against the Pahalgam terror attack opposed farmer leader Rakesh Tikait's participation.
BKU national president Naresh Tikait announced that the panchayat would be held at the GIC ground in Muzaffarnagar to deliberate on the incident.
Naresh Tikait said the incident at the 'Akrosh rally' was part of a conspiracy orchestrated by "a political party" to weaken the farmers' movement.
On Friday, Rakesh Tikait was allegedly heckled at the rally, organised by right-wing groups, to protest the Pahalgam attack and asked to go back. In the commotion, his turban also fell, purported videos of the incident showed.
"The incident was not spontaneous. It was pre-planned and driven by political motives," Naresh Tikait said, adding that farmers from across the region were beginning to gather in Sisauli and Muzaffarnagar ahead of the panchayat scheduled to begin in the afternoon.
Rakesh Tikait also denounced Friday's "heckling" and reiterated that he thought it was a political sabotage.
"This is a conspiracy by a particular political party to suppress the farmers' voice. Some youths were deliberately sent to disrupt the rally," he told reporters on Friday. He claimed that those shouting slogans against him appeared to be under the influence of alcohol.
In a related development, Tikait announced that the BKU would organise a tractor march to protest against the recent terrorist attack in Kashmir Valley's Pahalgam that left 26 people, mostly tourists, dead.
The date for the march will be decided in the coming days. He urged the Union government to take strict action against terrorist activities to calm public anger.
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Jharkhand Education Minister Ramdas Soren passes away at 62
Ranchi, Aug 15 (PTI): Jharkhand Education Minister Ramdas Soren died on Friday, JMM national spokesperson Kunal Sarangi said.
He was 62.
Soren was undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Delhi, where he was admitted on August 2.
"State Education Minister Ramdas Soren, who was undergoing treatment at a hospital in Delhi, is no more," Sarangi told PTI.
Soren's condition was critical and he was on life support, Sarangi said.
The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader was airlifted to the hospital in the national capital from Jamshedpur after he fell in the bathroom of his residence on August 2.
A multidisciplinary team of senior specialists was closely monitoring his condition and providing intensive medical care.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren condoled his death.
Hemant Soren, in a post on X, wrote, "Ramdas Da (brother) should not have left us like this. Last greetings to Dada..."
Ramdas Soren, born in Ghorabandha village in East Singhbhum district on January 1, 1963, began his political journey as the gram pradhan of the Ghorabanda panchayat, eventually rising to become one of the most influential ministers in the Hemant Soren-led cabinet.
He won the Ghatshila assembly seat for the third time in 2024 by defeating BJP's Babulal Soren, son of former chief minister Champai Soren.
ऐसे छोड़ कर नहीं जाना था रामदास दा...
— Hemant Soren (@HemantSorenJMM) August 15, 2025
अंतिम जोहार दादा... pic.twitter.com/5cKZkpIe9Z
